Riding eastward, Eira thought she could feel the pressure of the low, swollen clouds weighing on her shoulders. She’d believed this unplanned scouting trip would free her mind of frustration. Instead resentment seeped through her veins. Her thoughts turned over and over on themselves as the day wore on.
By the time Eira pulled up her horse, Geal, sullenness festered beneath her skin. She almost failed to hear Cian murmur, “Do you feel that?”
Tucked into the foothills and blanketed by forest, the village of Dorusduain had always been quiet. But today the sisters came upon unnatural silence. No languid sounds of cows being milked or soft footfalls of villagers going about their day.
Eira nodded at Cian.
“Something’s wrong.” Cian nudged her mount forward. Geal’s and Liath’s ears were up, alert and flicking back and forth. As they passed beneath the cover of trees along the small path that led into the village, Liath squealed and reared.
Keeping her seat, Cian reined in the mare and attempted to calm her. Geal pranced and snorted, her eyes rolling wildly so the whites showed.
With soothing whispers, Eira carefully slid from Geal’s back. “We should leave them here.”
“And if we need to run?” Cian asked as Liath shied.
“Our feet will carry us back to the horses quickly enough,” Eira answered.
They led the skittish horses to the edge of the forest, where the beasts became noticeably calmer. Eira tethered the mares to a fallen tree and the sisters returned to the path. As they moved beneath the forest canopy, Eira noticed that the silence wasn’t simply the absence of human noise. She couldn’t detect the song of a single bird or the buzz of an insect. The air was void of sound. The rasp of steel when Cian drew her sword was so deafening in contrast to the stillness around them it made Eira jump. Then she drew her sword as well.
The gloom of the woods broke when they reached the meadow in which the village squatted. Though the sky remained overcast, the thatch-roofed stone huts could have been bathed in sunlight compared to the nets of shadow cast by the trees along the path. Despite the brightness of the open space, Eira shuddered.
The village lay still. No chickens pecked the ground for seeds or insects. No children chased each other around the houses while their mothers patched worn clothes.
Eira and Cian exchanged a glance before moving farther into the village.
“We should check the houses,” Eira said. “I’ll go in while you keep watch.”
Cian nodded.
Ducking into the closest house, while Cian stood with her back to the open door, Eira crept forward. The hut was empty, but while she wouldn’t have described what she found as signs of a struggle, she did see what looked like disruption. A knife lay on the floor. The table near it held a loaf of bread only partly sliced. Embers from a cooking fire still glowed in the hearth.
“Is anyone there?” Cian called to Eira.
Eira emerged from the hut, shaking her head.
“I’ll check the next house,” Cian said, already moving.
They moved through the village methodically, searching every house for signs of people or what had happened but finding nothing. All that remained was evidence of a day in progress that had simply and suddenly stopped.
“Where are they?” Eira kicked the dirt in frustration. There was no blood. No sign of a fight or smell of death lingering. And Eira knew well that death was a scent that hung in the air long after its occurrence.
Cian turned a slow circle, surveying the houses they’d rifled through in vain. “The village is gone.”
Eira nodded at her sister’s echo of the messenger’s words. “But what does that even mean?”
“I don’t know.” Cian sheathed her sword. “But we won’t find out today.”
“You want to leave?” Eira frowned. “But we haven’t learned anything.”
Cian’s laugh was dry. “We learned it wasn’t a hoax.”
“We should search the forest,” Eira argued. “Search for tracks.”
“No.” Cian began to retrace their steps. “It’s time to return to Tearmunn. We’ve passed the point where we can do this alone.”
Eira gritted her teeth, knowing Cian was right. But she wanted to stay. To delve further into this mystery of a silent village.
“However the Circle decides to proceed, I’m not staying behind on the next mission,” Eira snapped.
“I didn’t say you were.” Cian glanced over her shoulder and smiled mischievously at Eira. “And I didn’t say I’m willing to stay behind either.”
With a laugh, Eira ran to catch her sister. When they reached the edge of the meadow, where the trees leaned over the path, Eira looked back at the silent huts, watching smoke that still slunk into the sky from fires abandoned . . . when?
“The village is gone,” Eira whispered to herself, but Cian heard her sister.
“We will find the cause of this,” Cian said. “Together.”
Eira took Cian’s outstretched hand, clasping it tight. “Together.”
SIXTEEN
THOUGH AT FIRST she’d welcomed Barrow’s silence, as they rode into the keep, his stony expression unnerved Ember to the point that her blood felt like ice. Not once had Barrow looked at her nor had he spoken. When they reached the stables, he barked orders to the servants and they quickly assumed care of the steaming mounts.
Without a word he strode away, leaving Ember with no choice but to chase after him. Barrow kept walking until they reached the practice field. She felt a spike of relief that it was empty. Ember wouldn’t have welcomed an audience for her first attempt at sparring, particularly when she’d be facing Barrow. She glanced at him, taking in his height, the massive blade strapped to his back, the broad set of his shoulders. She shivered but wasn’t entirely certain that fear was the cause for the gooseflesh on her skin.
“Lora!”
After so much silence, Barrow’s shout made Ember jump. He raised his hand in greeting as a figure garbed in a dark gray, hooded robe approached them. Ember’s chest caved a bit. She would have a witness to what was sure to be a humiliation. When the stranger reached them, slender hands pushed back the hood to reveal a face with delicate angles and a head of pale blond hair.
“Ember, this is Lora.” Barrow nodded to the blond girl. “Should you ever need to practice sparring on your own, she can assist you. Rarely is she away from the field.”